He seems to have dropped the 'suburban dad' imagery and trying to look tough and determined. The man's allure escapes me, so perhaps I am a poor judge.

But look at this -- prior to a convention that will decide nothing ... a pseudo-event designed for media coverage for announcements ... comes the big announcement that will stir the hearts of Conservatives. Our man is on the move!

OTTAWA — Six months after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's foreign policy prowess was pummelled by a disorganized state visit to India, his chief opponent is heading to New Delhi to try to "repair and strengthen" Canada-India relations.

Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer will take his team to India for nine days in October. He has plans to meet with senior government officials, business leaders and civil society and faith leaders.

"Standing with a united India is Canada's gateway to unprecedented human and economic development, and an essential alliance for Canada to strengthen in the face of shared threats," Scheer said in a statement.

He also praised India for being the world's largest democracy and having one of the fastest-growing economies, saying the country "in recent years is transforming into a rising power in the vast Indo-Pacific region and beyond."

"A Conservative government will dramatically expand the strategic relationship between our countries and our peoples and advance our shared security, prosperity and values. Unfortunately, Justin Trudeau's disastrous trip to India damaged this key relationship and we must now work to repair it."

Indeed, Trudeau's nine-day sojourn to India last February is likely one the Liberals wish they could erase after numerous missteps damaged Trudeau's reputation both at home and abroad.

The choice to wear high-end Indian fashions while touring Indian landmarks with his family made for some uncomfortable optics, widely distributed via social media, that are sure to resurface as the 2019 election season rolls around, if not sooner.

But the real body blow came when a Canadian man convicted in 1986 of trying to murder an Indian politician on Vancouver Island found his way onto the guest list of two different receptions with the prime minister in Mumbai and New Delhi.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi — whose silence on the first five days of Trudeau's trip was perceived by many as a purposeful snub — salvaged the trip near the end, greeting Trudeau warmly with his signature bear hug at the presidential palace.

The two signed a number of agreements about environmental policies and trade, including a joint commitment to battle extremism that named two Sikh extremist groups, riling up the Sikh Canadian community, said Balpreet Singh, legal counsel for the World Sikh Organization of Canada. [....]

India is one of the world's fastest growing economies, displacing France for sixth place among the world's nations last year, yet trade with Canada remains sluggish. In 2012, the former Conservative government set a goal of increasing two-way trade to $15 billion by 2015. In 2017, it was about $8.4 billion.

One can't help but stand in awe at the arrogance. Does Scheer really imagine he will command interviews with the PM or India? But one wonders at the priorities as well ... how would the tandem of Bernier and O'Leary have handled the political opportunities of the present? Would they have been making plans for India, or talking about the auto pact?

Scheer thinks in terms of media images, and not at the issues on the ground. He is a decent man, no doubt, but he is a bureaucrat to the core. He has the limitations of the bureaucrat. Here we see the move of a timid man. He thinks he can persuade Canadians by 'fixing' India.

To the credit of the CPC, going to the UK and meeting with the Prime Minister to assure that we would be amongst the first in line to discuss Trade after the Brexit was a smart move.

Especially given the current governments issues on International Trade over the last three years.

The Harper CPC was working toward a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement w/India as early as 2010 and I would imagine that has largely fallen off the Table with the current governments approach to trade in general and wasn't helped by Trudeau visit.

If the CPC wants to discuss trade with India;
Great.

Stephen Harper and Narendra Modi have been political allies in the past.
Narendra Modi 's Bharatiya Janata Party is a member of Stephen Harper's International Democrat Union and Harper visited with Modi earlier this year.
I would imagine this likely laid some groundwork for any discussions on the matter in the near term.

If this trip is about simply about offsetting the Trudeau trip than I question the merit but if they are there to build on the framework of trade much as they did with the UK, I am fine with it.

Far too often opposition simply sits around crying into their beers across from a majority government.

9 days in India ? not sure an opposition leader has ever gone on a trip for 9 days to any foreign country before . that would make the trip significant

although I'm not really sure what Scheer hopes to accompolish on the trip , trudeau's india trip hasn't really been in the news for some time and unlikely an opposition leader will get the kind of press he did

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